The Pleasure of Your Company
by Baroness Hera
Summary: The man who assaulted Eddie Janko got off the hook on technicalities and is bent on revenge. What will Jamie Reagan do for his partner?
1. Chapter 1

**The Pleasure of Your Company (Chapter 1)**

It had been an uncharacteristically uneventful day on the job for her and her partner and New York Police Department officer Eddie Janko was thankful for that.

"You want me to grab some coffee for you from the kitchen?" Jamie Reagan, her partner offered. Eddie was about to answer 'yes' before an officer passing by told her that Sergeant Renzulli wanted to see her in his office ASAP.

"See you, Reagan."

Jamie shrugged and nodded, gesturing a brief goodbye of some sort.

Sergeant Renzulli was deeply buried under a tall stack of paperwork and had his reading glasses perched on the tip of his nose.

"You wanna see me, Sarge?" Eddie said. She made her way in after knocking and saw the nod from Renzulli from behind the glass.

"Yeah. Have a seat."

Eddie Janko had been called into her superior's office a few times and the nervousness that those meetings had caused her never got old with the times. She had been reprimanded once because Renzulli feared that she might be lying to the District Attorney's Office based on the differing recount she gave compared to an evidence that she never saw. Not a word came from Jamie even though he knew that she knew his sister is the DA handling the case. But it ended well, and they never spoke of it again after Jamie apologized to her for calling her a liar. Eddie had been called in on several occasions mostly because Renzulli wanted to ask her what happened and then warned her to be anticipative on repercussions. She got it that Renzulli didn't want his officers to get into unnecessary trouble. All those call-ins that she never liked had caused her to worry when she was driving or alone. The feeling was really bad at first but then she got used to it because she understood that Renzulli was doing his job and he didn't look like he enjoyed admonishing and reprimanding his officers at all, judging by the mountain of paper piled in from of him. Renzulli obviously got more important things to do. But still, the pit of her stomach felt bitter every time Sergeant Renzulli summoned her into his office.

"It's been awhile after your probationary was over. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Sarge. Thank you for asking. It has been really interesting."

"Of course," Renzulli gave her a look. Eddie couldn't tell whether it was pity or amusement. Eddie took it as both and decided to make the best of it.

"I think that come with being partnered with the PC's son."

Renzulli stared at her. Eddie felt really stupid right now but of course, her mouth as usual launched her away into the stratosphere where the fools and the awkwardly positioned ran their kingdom.

"Officer Jamie attracts a lot of attention," Eddie laughed nervously. Renzulli huffed, in an expression that signalled exasperation. The sergeant finally broke into a slow-building laughter, more like a train chuffing actually, guarded but earnest. He had tears in his eyes. Not sad tears but tears that came out when one gets tickled in the stomach. Eddie let the laughter died down, savouring it until it was back to silence and made her nervous again.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"No. Not this time."

"Oh," Eddie let out a choked breath and slumped into the chair, body bent in relief.

"I called you in to ask you if you want to request a reassignment."

"A re-assignment to what, Sarge?"

"A new partner."

The question made her paralyzed for a split second. It Jamie Reagan had asked a question on the same level of ridiculousness, she would balk at him, rolled her eyes or make funny faces, making grotesque mirror images to Jamie's subdued and stoic expressions.

But to Sergeant Renzulli's, all she did was stare at him and like a robot, said "No, Sir," after expecting explanations or some sort of introductory remark that never came. So her answer was short and sweet too.

"OK," Renzulli said.

"Can I be dismissed, sir?"

"Yeah," Renzulli said absent-mindedly, entertaining errant thoughts in his mind. Eddie got up, ready to leave.

"Oh for God's sake, sit down, Officer Janko," Renzulli huffed. He put down the paper in his hand and took off his reading glasses.

"Sir, yes sir."

Eddie sat back down, wide-eyed and almost terrified.

"Officer Janko, I'm going to lay it down to you and I want you to listen carefully."

"I'm listening, sir."

"Janko, there's nothing in the world that Officer Jamie Reagan won't do for you. And I'm not saying things like letting you drive or getting you coffee."

"Because he won't unless he feels like it. I understand, sir. But I don't quite follow, sir, the rest of it."

"Do you recall at the start of the year when you and Officer Reagan handled the domestic?"

"Yes." She remembered too well. She was pretty pissed off at Jamie Reagan for that. As if she needed defending, she had fumed.

"As a consequence of the unnecessary force he used in the domestic, I had Officer Reagan in my office to remind him that if he had romantic feelings for you I would assign him to a new partner."

Blood rushed to Eddie's head but she saw the ramifications.

"Nothing's changed, Sarge. We're still partners."

"Which could mean…"

"He has no romantic feelings towards me, nor I him."

"Or, he just enjoys the pleasure of your company too much to let you go and he is willing to mask his real feelings just to have you around."

"You can't pin that down on him, Sarge. We are good. Neither Officer Reagan nor I have been acting beyond our capacity as police officers ever since then."

"Do you understand what will that kind of thinking will do to the job?"

Eddie didn't know what else Renzulli was expecting as an answer but she gave the only answer she could give.

"With all due respect sir, we'll be the best officers ever partnered, who always got each other's back. And if I did anything wrong due to my inexperience, Officer Reagan would tell me to do the right thing in the eyes of men and in the eyes of the law, because he would want only the best for me." Eddie spoke without a beat and Renzulli stared at her and blinked like what she said actually made sense.

" I understand, Officer Janko."

"Thank you, sir."

"You're dismissed."

When Eddie poked her head into the kitchen, Jamie was no longer there. She walked to her locker room and Jamie caught up to her. Jamie was already in his casual clothes, a pair of faded blue jeans, a grey t-shirt and a weathered brown leather jacket.

"Hey. What's that about?"

He had concern written all over his face. Eddie couldn't blame him because a walk into Renzulli's office for her would always means trouble of some sort, any sort.

"Oh come on, Reagan. What made you think I was in trouble?" Eddie rolled her eyes. Jamie blinked as he stared her down.

"Come on. Seriously now, Eddie."

Eddie paused a beat and smiled, masking the dazed look on her face so Jamie won't press her anymore.

"In his strange, non-direct way, Sarge belatedly congratuled me on the end of my probationary."

"Wasn't that a little too late?"

"In his strange, non-direct way, I said."

"OK," Jamie said, making that strange but interesting thing with his lower jaw.

"And you still owe me a belated dinner celebration, so Renzulli's not the only one. You took a rain check the first time I asked."

Jamie Reagan stopped on his track. The look in his eyes was signalling that he was thinking very hard, as if he was weighing all the pros and cons and finally his body relaxed, signalling resignation based on clear logical reasoning.

"I do owe you that."

"I pick the place."

"What else is new?"

"Let's go Thai."

"What?"

"I watched this movie. The guy woke up after seventy years of deep sleep and when he woke up a bunch of things happened to him but he's got this list of things he was going to do to make up for the time he lost and Thai food was on that list."

"Things people recommended him to do. He didn't actually on his own volition wanted to do them," Jamie corrected her.

"You watched it?" Eddie asked excitedly. She'd never thought he would do it.

"After you kept talking about it non-stop till the DVD came out."

"I gotta change," Eddie said.

"I'll wait outside."

After they arrived at Eddie's apartment block, Jamie didn't come upstairs. They didn't kiss. In fact, they fist-pumped on the street in front of her home before he got back in his car. She waved him goodbye. But he promised to pick her up tomorrow morning because she still got her car at the station.

She hadn't had a proper dinner with Jamie for quite a while. They've had ice cream on the street, and meals from street vendors. But that was a proper meal, with a menu and just the two of them this time. The food almost killed Jamie but he put up a brave face. Eddie knew he only took a little bit of rice and he had to bury the only protein he ate, a shrimp in the rice so he'd get the chilli not on his tongue. She, on the other hand was savouring the interesting dishes one by one, commenting as she went along.

When Eddie entered her apartment, she was light-headedly happy. She locked the door behind her. Her heart jumped out of her ribcage when she saw the shadow of a man sitting on her sofa. She launched herself back to the door but she was grabbed by not one, but two large men. Eddie kicked and screamed but one of the men got her in a bear hug and another punched her in the face. Her vision went black. When she came to, she became subdued because she saw and understood what she was up against.

"Hey babe," said the shadow on the couch.

She knew the instance she heard the voice. Jake Singer. He assaulted her. It was a year ago but she remembered it still. It was only the urgency of her policing job that made her quell her nervous memory and the fact that she, with Jamie's help collared the son-of-a-bitch. It was very difficult for her to let the unpleasant memory go but she did. And the last thing she expected was to find herself where it all began, in her very own house.

"I bet you thought you've gotten rid of me when you had me arrested," Singer said.

"You are going to let me go, you son-of-a-bitch. I'm a police officer. You're not getting away this time. Not after THIS."

Singer was about to say something when they all heard knocks on the door.

"Eddie."

Eddie knew the voice. It was Jamie Reagan's. She closed her eyes in frustration. She almost cursed. _Why on earth is he here? He should be driving home already!_ She screamed internally.

"Hey Eddie. You left your phone in the car."

_Damn. Damn it. Damn it all to hell._

Eddie blinked. Tears fell from her eyes. Not sad tears, but fear and shit-scared tears.

"Well. What do you know? Things are going to get interesting," Singer commented.

"No. Don't do this," Eddie said. She hated to beg to a criminal but she had to do it this time.

"How can I not do anything when I came prepared?"

Singer said and signalled his goons.

_To be continued._


	2. Chapter 2

**The Pleasure of Your Company (Chapter 2)**

Dinner went well, considering. It consisted of movie talk and Eddie giving repeat order for iced drinks because Jamie felt his lips were falling off his face every time he put something in his mouth. He had tears streaming down his face and Eddie teased him for 'crying like a baby'.

"So what do you think? Do you think I got what it takes to be a good cop?" Eddie had asked.

"Yeah. You do."

"Honestly, Reagan?"

"Yes. Officer Eddie Janko, you've got what it takes."

"But…?" Eddie trailed off a question, getting the feeling that his sentence was not exactly over.

"You just got to be careful OK? Being a good cop doesn't make you invincible. You could get hurt like everybody else."

"Don't you worry, Reagan," she said, crinkling her nose like when she was trying to assure him of impossible things.

"I always got a spare firearm taped under the furniture in my apartment," Eddie said as she stabbed a spicy squid with a fork and held it close to her lips.

"Amen to that," Jamie raised his glass of unknown juice. To the squid and the spare firearm.

The drive home was comfortable. He asked about her father and what went down between them but she said she isn't ready to talk about it just yet. He wanted to kiss her but he couldn't because he wanted to keep her. And a hug would have felt like a huge goodbye, like he was sending her off somewhere. Instinctively, he guessed, Eddie had initiated the fist-pump and it felt right.

"Pick you up at 7," he said.

"Bright and early."

Eddie walked to her building. Jamie started the engine and she gave a parting look. A look of regret, he wanted to believe, but who would know? Jamie had driven off a block when he noticed that her phone was on the seat. It must have slid off her lap when she put it there after she texted a relative. She must have not felt it slip from her lap.

Jamie turned the car around. He reached her place and stopped the car. He took her phone and ran up the stairs. The corridor to her apartment was quiet. Jamie came to Eddie's door and knocked. There was no answer.

How long had it been? She must have not tucked in already. She had to take off her make up at least, Jamie had thought.

"Hey Eddie. You left your phone in the car," Jamie said to the door. His ears were close enough to the wooden construct that he caught a muffled cry of a woman yelling 'no' and a man's voice. His police instinct kicked in and he dialled his detective brother, Danny Reagan.

"Hey kid," was the voice at the other end of the line.

"I'm at Officer Janko's apartment. I'm off duty. There are intruders inside. I need back up."

"Wait till back up arrives, OK?" Danny said.

"Yeah," Jamie answered. But of course he wouldn't. He didn't know how much time he had with Eddie in this. Jamie didn't disconnect the call but left the phone on. He knew Danny was cursing profusely at the other end. Jamie pulled out his service weapon and rammed into the door with all his strength. It was not dead bolted, just latched. The door chain snapped into two. Expecting the force he exerted to cause him to crash on the floor, Jamie expertly folded his body like he was a ball and was able to land on one knee with his Glock trained on whoever was in front of him.

It was Eddie with a knife to her throat. Her fingers were clawing at the arms of the man who held the knife.

"You might want to drop your gun," the man said excitedly.

Jamie knew at the instance what he was up against. It was the perp who assaulted Eddie last year. He remembered everything about Jake Singer. He knew the scum bag wasn't a low class criminal. This guy had means and he had the intention to hurt. Jamie put his service weapon to the floor.

"Don't hurt her," he said.

The instant he let go of his gun, he was tackled by two men who promptly duct taped his hands to his back. He tried tensing up his body so he could get precious life-saving millimetres to loosen himself from, so he could squirm his way out of the bindings, but the men were seasoned goons. One of them rammed his large fist into his stomach, sending him doubling over in pain. He coughed as air was knocked out of his body, his muscles weakening and limp, so his plan to squirm his way out of his binding was put to a halt. On the bright side, he almost had nothing during the extreme Thai fest so he only had bile rising up to his throat. And if he were alone he would have wretched violently in pain but he didn't want to give the guy the satisfaction.

"Jamie, I'm sorry," Eddie said, tears in her eyes.

"It's OK, Eddie. They won't get away with this," he assured her.

But the fact was, nothing was OK. Jamie couldn't do anything else but to wait for Danny. How long would it take for Danny or a patrol to get here? Five minutes? What if Eddie didn't have five minutes? What if it only takes five minutes to change a person's life from being just OK to a living hell? He's got to have that five minutes.

"How the hell did you get off?"

"Glad you asked. An assault charge, made by the victim who is a police officer, goaded by her partner three days after the said assault and the arrest was made by the victim herself with her partner. Sounds fishy already. So I got roughened up a bit but you know that the charge won't stick for long. So, here I am. And now it is time for me finish what I started."

Jamie was already completely tied up to a kitchen chair.

"You resist one bit and your partner gets the knife," the maniac warned Eddie before he slid the knife on the floor to one of the men.

"Let her go. Take me. Do what you want. Just let her go,"Jamie said. It was logical. Worse came to worst, Singer was going to kill him. But to Eddie, Singer would beat her up, violate her and then kill her. He had to choose the lesser between two evils, in the most bleak of future.

"No, I can't do that. I'm sorry," the perp said in a sing song voice.

"Eddie, you've got to fight!" Jamie yelled to his partner. He only saw fear in her eyes.

"Shut up," Singer said and pulled Eddie by her hair and pushed her towards the single sofa. The force was strong enough that the furniture turned over. Eddie was curled up on the floor. Singer strode towards her.

"You do know that I like it rough."

Singer pulled Eddie up to her knees. Then, he half pushed, half threw Eddie to the coffee table which was made of hardwood. The furniture turned over with Eddie sprawled on it. The din made by such violence was horrendous.

Jamie knew he was helpless. The only thing that could help them was Eddie putting up a fight no matter what the consequence. Eddie writhed in pain as she struggled with the effect of her terrific crash landing on the coffee table.

"Fight, Eddie!" Jamie yelled.

"Shut up already! You're killing the mood," Singer yelled angrily. He took the knife from the goon's hand and stood over Jamie.

As if Singer was annoyed, without preamble he thrust the blade into the centre of Jamie's torso, kept it there for a second and pulled it out. He didn't even use extra force. A knife was always sharp enough to slip into skin and flesh and muscles like a blunt butter knife into soft margarine. Jamie didn't feel it enter even though he saw it. But when Singer pulled it out, he felt as if someone had cut him in half. Jamie breathed sharply and clenched his jaws shut. He didn't want to let Singer see that he had surrender to fate or even pain.

When the knife was finally out, Jamie could see that the knife was five inches long. His vision began to spin. He had felt pain before but nothing could describe this one. The kind of pain made anyone wish for a quick death. Instinctively, he wanted to staunch his wound with his bare hands and curl up like a hurting child but his hands were tied behind his back and he was tied to a chair. His muscles tensed up as adrenaline surged in his veins. Soon, it would run out and there would be nothing left. The urge to double over was cruelly hindered by his bindings. Jamie just bent at his neck, coughing out bile as he felt pain he had never felt before.

_This would be a good time for Danny or anyone to come save the day and Eddie_, he thought. But deep in his gut, Jamie knew that he was done for. Everything felt cold but the heat from his own blood flowing down his torso.

"Fight, Eddie," Jamie gasped.

_To be continued…_


	3. Chapter 3

_Thanks for the reviews, guys! I will continue forthwith._

**The Pleasure of Your Company (Chapter 3)**

Eddie felt the world turn upside down. She lay sprawled on the upturned table. She wished she could see her partner's face and gain strength from the light in his eyes but she only saw darkness and fireflies in her field of vision.

"Fight, Eddie."

She heard Jamie and his voice jarred her back to reality. And reality said that if she didn't make a move, she and Jamie were going to die at the hands of these maniacs. Everything came back to her. Eddie groped under her body. She knew exactly where it was. A gun taped to the bottom of the now upturned coffee table. She pried it off the table desperately and twisted her body till she was on her back. She saw Singer on his way back to her, holding a knife. Instinctively, survival at the top of her list of things to do today, Eddie pulled the trigger. She didn't see where the bullet hit but she saw Singer drop to the floor. Eddie got up, gun still trained on the unmoving body of Jack Singer. His eyes were open, the knife still firmly placed in his cold, dead grasp. Seeing that their employer was no longer hiring, the two goons scampered out of the apartment. Eddie didn't give chase.

Her mind was solely focused on the figure slumped on the kitchen chair. She staggered towards Jamie.

"Jamie," she called as she reached him. Jamie's head was bowed, chin touching his chest, his eyes closed. Her hand flew to his midsection where it was slick with blood.

"Oh no no, Jamie" she cried. She lunged for the knife and pried it out Singer's cold dead fingers. She got it and got sick at the sight of the thin film of blood on it. She cut the duct tape to free Jamie's wrists and cut the tape docking his body to the chair. Jamie slid off the chair, all force from his body gone. Eddie supported his upper body and eased him down to the floor. She used both hands to staunch the wound in his mid-section. She kept calling his name. She let go of one bloody hand and started slapping Jamie's colourless face.

"Jamie! Open your eyes! Jamie!" She screamed in between sobs. She was praying, no begging to God that when blood circulates back to his brain Jamie would regain consciousness. Her prayer was answered. Jamie stirred.

"Eddie…" he groaned.

"Jamie, oh Jamie," she sucked in her tears, relieved but aware that they were far from being out of danger.

"Did he-?" Jamie asked.

"He's dead. I shot him. We're OK, we're OK," she said, giving him assurance.

"Uh," Jamie breathed out in pain. A spasm passed through his body. Textbook first aid said that Jamie was going into shock. Eddie felt Jamie tremble. She heard the sirens.

"They're coming, Jamie. Help's coming,"

Eddie kept holding on to his wound. Eddie had lost her tears. Her mind was now singularly focused on getting Jamie through this. Jamie grabbed Eddie's hand holding in his insides.

"Yes, you hold on, Reagan," Eddie encouraged her partner.

Two patrolmen burst into the apartment. Detective Danny Reagan was with them. He got on his knees next to his brother.

"What happened, Janko?" Danny Reagan asked in utter frustration.

"He was stabbed," Eddie said, gesturing with a nod to the knife lying on the floor. Eddie saw the look on Detective Reagan's face when he saw at the knife. The detective's face crumbled in anguish.

"How long ago?"

"Two minutes."

Eddie hoped that her mind was not playing tricks on her but she actually felt that it had been an eternity for her in the wretched apartment.

"I need a bus!" Detective Reagan yelled to the officers.

"Done, Detective," one of them informed him.

"Danny, you came," Jamie whispered.

"Yeah. I'm here, kid," Danny Reagan said, touching Jamie's sweat slicked face.

"Jesus, Danny. It hurts so bad…"

"Detective, do something!" Eddie couldn't help herself from panicking. For every spasm in Jamie's body, Eddie felt it. Danny shook his head, as if shaking a bad memory.

"Danny... ugh."

"Listen to me, kid. You feel pain. I know it hurts like hell but that is the only thing telling you that you're alive. You keep breathing and I'm gonna be right here. Eddie and I are gonna take good care of you, ya hear?"

"Sure thing, Danny," Jamie replied. And then his grip loosened completely and his hand just rested on his still chest.

"Jamie!" Detective Reagan half-yelled, half-wailed.

"No, no, no," Eddie said, a litany of desperation.

"Sir, ma'am. Please step away," a deep voice said from behind them.

"We're going to help him."

Danny Reagan half crawled away from Jamie's side and Eddie just slid her way out of the space needed by the paramedics. The experts swooped down on Jamie Reagan like hungry vultures. They cut up his shirt, exposing his alabaster white skin marred by a clean two inches long thin marking in red and black. Jamie was beautiful even then, Eddie thought. Eddie didn't take her eyes off her partner until they took him away out of her sight.

Eddie was transported to the hospital on a different emergency vehicle. As she alighted from the back door of the ambulance, she was offered a wheelchair but she declined. She saw her partner being wheeled in.

"His breathing is shallow," one of the paramedics announced. Eddie saw Jamie's eyes, drawn to slits, recognition failing. Eddie reached out her hand, stealing a moment as the gurney passed by, and touched the tips of his fingers, a split second of contact that she needed before he went out her reach.

Oh God. Please let my partner live, Eddie prayed.

Eddie was brought into a room for check up. A nurse with neck length light blond hair approached her. She was smiling but her eyes bore anything but joy.

"Officer Eddie Janko, my name's Linda. And I'll be taking care of you."

The name rang a bell.

"Linda? You're Detective Reagan's wife. Jamie's sister-in-law."

"Yes, I am. You are Jamie's partner."

Eddie couldn't bottle it any longer.

"I - I did all this. I made this happen," she said, looking at the speckle of her partner's blood on her ivory yellow blouse.

"No. An evil, twisted man made this happen," Linda assured her as she cleaned Eddie's bleeding forehead, which she didn't notice she had and gave her stitches. Eddie also needed stitches for her split lower lips. Linda touched her ribs and Eddie gasped.

"Worst, you got broken ribs. Best, just some soreness. We're going to put you on bed rest for at least for at least 24 hours before you can step out of the hospital."

"OK,"

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up and changed."

"Thank you."

"No, thank you for being such a good patient. Jamie - " Linda said and stopped suddenly. Eddie felt emotion was rising in Linda's throat.

"Please go on. Tell me about Jamie."

"Jamie is a very difficult patient. Two years ago he was brought in, clearly traumatized and I had to do a check up on him. He was squirming and fidgeting and complaining all the way. He wanted to get up when I was taking his BP. He even yelled at me, I mean, I was just trying to help –"

Eddie felt better already. Linda had tears hanging to her eyes as she told her that. Little things about Jamie were beginning to creep into people's memory about him.

"At least he's not fidgeting now," Eddie blurted out. The moment she did it, she knew she crossed the line. But Linda stared at her for a moment and she started laughing. Eddie joined in and laughed until she'd got tears in her eyes.

"What's so funny?" Danny Reagan walked in on his wife and Eddie huffing.

"Nothing, Detective," Eddie said.

"Laughter is the medicine, Danny," Linda quipped.

"How's Officer Janko?"

"Blood pressure is elevated. She suffered concussions and needed a few stitches and sore ribs. We're keeping her for at least 24 hours to see if there are latent internal injuries."

"How's Jamie, Detective?" Eddie asked.

"He's in surgery. I'll keep you posted," Detective Reagan said and left.

"Thank you for letting me stay. I have a feeling that I'm OK …"

"No. You need this, Eddie."

"I want to see him when he wakes up."

"Well, Jamie had said he has always liked your company."

"He did."

"Yes. He did." Linda nodded, lost in another memory.

Eddie got herself cleaned up and wore a hospital gown. She got into her room and had visitors. Her sister came and Eddie updated her on their dad whom she visited last year. Eddie's sister laughed, not really caring. Then she left. The rest of the time was spent replaying the horrific incident at her apartment. It was a whirlwind where everything was just pain and humiliation. Then she remembered holding Jamie's limp body on the floor, holding on to his wound and begging him to open his eyes. That was not the way she wanted to touch him. Fear crept into her mind. She could not be with Jamie Reagan anymore. She had done enough damage.

"May I come in?"

It was Linda interrupting her lonesome thoughts.

"Hey."

"Jamie's awake. You can see if you want to."

"Yeah. But-"

Linda raised her eyebrows.

"What about the family?" Eddie asked, previously informed by Jamie himself about THE family in passing, just enough for her to get the idea of the family – the mandatory Sunday dinner where Jamie only missed the day his former partner Vinny was shot dead and he himself took one in the vest; the cemetery visits; the year-end week-long holiday; the derby race, the boys' camping trip; etc., etc. And all she had was a solitary visitor who left after five minutes.

"We all had our turn," Linda explained.

"Jamie asked for you."

"He did?"

"He wants to know if you're OK."

Eddie chuffed a short laugh. So typical of Jamie! She thought.

"How's he?"

"Chocful of the good stuff. But lucid."

"Is he being his usual difficult self?"

"Not yet."

Linda accompanied Eddie to Jamie's room, and the Reagans were standing all around, talking softly with worried expression on their faces. Eddie gave a respectful meek smile and nodded to them. She didn't feel like saying anything. The police commissioner Dad, whom she met on her first day on the job, whom also had come to talk to her briefly after she was checked in by Linda nodded to her I return. The others she automatically knew without ever having to meet them – the great grandpa, the DA elder sister, the nieces and nephews. She noticed there was no girlfriend or fiancé figure, so she figured out that Jamie is single for now. She felt like she was walking on a tightrope thinking that these people might begrudge her for having led their most beloved and cherished son to near death.

"It's OK," Linda said and opened the door for her. Once she was inside, Linda closed the door and Eddie had Jamie all to herself.

Eddie approached Jamie's bed both in fear and excitement. Fear to see him hurting, excited to see him alive.

"Hey," Eddie started. Jamie opened his eyes. He looked tired and his eyes didn't have the danger she always saw in them.

"Eddie?" Jamie whispered hoarsely, as if being awakened from stupor.

"Yeah, I'm here," Eddie touched her partner's hand which was resting on his wounded midsection and gently interlocked her fingers with his and laid their interconnecting hands on his body.

"You're OK," he rasped. Eddie nodded, overwhelmed with emotions.

"How are you feeling?" She let a tear escaped.

"That's the thing. I'm on a lot of drugs and I still feel sore."

"I'm so sorry. I'd never wish this to happen to you."

"No, Eddie. I'm in terrible pain but it's not your fault."

"It is. If only –"

"Ugh," Jamie gasped suddenly, as if suppressing a wave of pain.

"Are you OK?" Eddie asked. Jamie just grimaced. Eddie didn't wait. She poked her head out of the door and called Linda who was talking the DA sister.

"What's wrong?"

"Jamie, he seems to be in a lot of pain."

Linda took a look at the heart monitor and his charts and the things hanging by his bed.

"He just needs a stronger dose," Linda said and adjusted his IV.

"There you go. Are you OK, Jamie?"

"Thanks, Linda," Jamie managed to say to his sister-in-law.

"He will immediately fall asleep though, so don't worry. That comes with the drug."

"Can I be with him for a while, till he falls asleep?" Eddie asked hesistantly.

"Sure, take your time."

Linda left them. Jamie sought for her hand and Eddie gave in.

"Don't go just yet," Jamie said, apparently drifting away.

"I'm right here."

A few seconds later, Jamie's eyes closed and his grip loosened. The heart monitor beeped steadily. Eddie saw the rhythmic fall and rise of her partner's chest and was relieved.

"Now that you're asleep I want to tell you stuff I couldn't tell you before. I'll start with my Dad," Eddie paused.

"He got into drug dealing. So you can guess where I got that fancy car. And then, he went to prison. My mom, she left even before the drugs came. My sister and I weren't close, but she's on my contacts list."

Eddie looked at the ceiling to suck in her tears.

"You see, I'm a lot of trouble. I am trouble. You, Jamie; you and your perfect family, is a trouble magnet on your own. You don't need me in the equation. I will only hurt you."

Her tears fell freely now. She couldn't control the tremor in her voice.

"I'll take two weeks off. I'll go to my sister's. I mean, she's family. Then I'll come back when you come back and I'll ask to be reassigned to a new partner since you won't do it. I love this job but I can't see you get hurt because of me. We can say good bye then."

Eddie squeezed Jamie's hand for the last time and let go.

"I'm gonna wean myself off you."

Slowly she made her way back to her room, changed into her freshly laundried clothes and went out, not looking back.

_To be continued…_


	4. Chapter 4

**The Pleasure of Your Company (Final Chapter) **

_I can't stand the Jamie-Eddie stand-off anymore. There is no solution to it without separating them. But if that happens what are the shippers gonna do? So that's why we write fics._

They said after two weeks he should be as good as new. But Jamie Reagan discovered otherwise as he sprinted along the hall to catch up with his partner Eddie Janko whom he saw emerging from a corner and walking briskly towards Renzulli's office with a long brown envelope in her hand. The stabbing pain came back, burning his core. The stitches had come off but the previously parted flesh and muscles pulled as he ran but he just gritted his teeth. Not to mention that he hadn't been out for a run for two weeks and the little baby marathon he was in felt like it was going to kill him.

Just five more yards, he gushed in between short puffs of breath.

Gotcha! With one swift movement of his wrist, Eddie's letter was in his grip.

"Hey!" Eddie Janko spun, only to see Jamie tearing the envelope open, scanning the letter and then proceeded to tearing up the piece of paper into little pieces. He let everything drop to the floor in unrecoverable bits.

"Reagan! You destroyed my letter!" Eddie yelled, catching the attention of officers in the proximity.

"What letter?" Jamie Reagan huffed and swayed dangerously in front of his partner. His head was spinning. He felt as if he couldn't breathe. Seeing his pale and sweaty face, Eddie quickly grabbed hold of him from under his arms and let him lean on her.

"What on earth is going on?"Renzulli said, sticking his bespectacled face out of his office.

"Nothing, Sarge," Jamie answered, still in Eddie's arms. Renzulli emerged fully now, exasperation written all over his face.

"I assigned you to desk duty so you don't run around. You got your stitches pulled or something, Reagan?"

"No, sir. I just feel faint. It will pass. The fault is my own," Jamie Reagan explained.

"Janko, take him out of here," Renzulli ordered his partner.

"Yes, sir."

The two limped out of the main office, out of the building and got a seat in the enclosed compound of the 12th.

"Don't you scare me like that again, Reagan," Eddie scolded.

"Sorry. I had to do it," Jamie said, feeling better now.

"Nuts?" Eddie said, offering him a handful of steaming chestnuts wrapped in brown paper. Jamie couldn't help being amazed how Eddie had always managed to get food at any available opportunity and still maintain her figure.

"I could use some nuts," Jamie said taking one. Eddie gave a small laugh and shook her head.

"How did you figure out what was in that letter?" Eddie asked, annoyed and perplexed.

"Took me some cunning detective work," Jamie replied nonchalantly, shrugging, chestnut in his mouth.

"I've never told anyone. No one," Eddie continued, fuming. At the end of the sentence, Eddie's eyes widened and her mouth opened and shut soundlessly.

"You …" Eddie let her word hung in the air, her eyes narrowed in icy vengeance.

"Played possum, played drugged possum," Jamie explained.

Eddie's face reddened.

"Eddie, if you want to start laying blame for everything that happened to any one of us, there is plenty to go around. I asked you to collar the son-of-a-bitch, I asked you to press charges. If there was someone to be blamed, that person was me. You can't take that blame alone and that misguided guilt is not a reason for you to ask to be reassigned to a new partner," Jamie offered his two cents and was surprised that Eddie was even listening. He knew this because Eddie scoffed at the word 'misguided'.

"I don't know, Jamie. I can't lose you. Not like that."

"You won't."

Eddie's eyes widened at that. She stood up; the pack of chestnut just slid from her lap and fell to the grass. Jamie had never seen Eddie disregard her food. He knew he had crossed the line now and calling her 'misguided' was not it.

"You're f*cking lying, Jamie Reagan! You know you can't f*cking promise anyone that!" Eddie yelled. She really lost it this time. Her hands were flying all over her face in wild gestures. Jamie could only imagine that someone had promised her the same thing and had bailed out on her. Someone she had given her trust, loyalty and love completely to.

"I'm sorry, Eddie. God knows how much I want to say that to you and how much I wish it is true."

"You and I had lost too many loved ones to know that that kind of promise is just a f*ucking lie. Don't you dare say that to me again," Eddie said, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

"You're right," Jamie stood up too. Eddie gestured wildly with her hands as if to show that she had every right to be mad at him.

"We've both lost people we love but that doesn't give you the excuse to push people away. Especially people who care about you."

Eddie went silent, her gesturing had stopped. She was sucking in her tears.

Jamie stepped closer towards his partner and without preamble cocooned her in his arms. Eddie gasped. She put her arms against the planes of his chest as if wanting to shield herself from him, but Jamie felt no push coming from her. She was just taking him slowly, because he remembered that she said she had wanted to wean herself off him, separating herself from him in the duration of over two weeks and she had been successful. And he had proven to her that he was not so easy to be rid off and she had to ease his re-entry into her orbit by shielding herself. Jamie felt Eddie slowly lowered her arms and let them travel along his ribs. They stopped at the flank of his back and her fingers gripped his uniform in the ridge of his backbone. She buried her face in the valley of his chest and Jamie let her mess up his uniform with her tears and her running make up, if she had any on because if she hadn't she'd still look beautiful.

Jamie Reagan gave thanks for an uncharacteristically uneventful day on the job such as this one.

_The End. (Thanks for reading everyone!)_


End file.
